About

Co-operative Housing International is one of the eight sectoral organisations of the International Co-operative Alliance. It was established to promote the development of co-operative housing in all countries, and in particular developing countries, as an economic and social contribution to the problem of providing shelter.

For the past few years, the Board of Directors of CHI has undertaken several initiatives to raise the co-operative housing sector’s profile. It does this by promoting the successes of co-op housing and by facilitating networking opportunities among housing co-operative leaders at panel discussions and symposiums. These initiatives are excellent opportunities for our members, housing co-op experts and developers to share best practices and discuss key issues.

Through an active board of directors and dedicated staffing, we aim to deliver a program of work that is of relevance to our existing members, harmonizes with the strategic objectives of the Alliance, and promotes the growth of the co-op housing movement throughout the world.

As the introduction to the Guidance Notes to the Co-operative Principles states, “Co-operatives are active in every sector of the global economy. A key distinguishing feature is that co-operatives create wealth for the many members of co-operatives who engage in co-operative businesses as service users, producers, independent business owners, consumers, and workers…” It is this defining feature that separates co-operative forms of housing from traditional market owner-occupier or investor-owned housing and creates the potential for community housing that is operated by and for the resident members and not for the purpose of profit, personal or corporate. It is the job of Co-operative Housing International to raise awareness of the potential of housing co-ops as widely as possible.